Before moving on to other subjects, I thought I’d add a final word (for now) on the Great Keith Olbermann Debate. Is he a progressive savior amidst the morass of mainstream media or is he a progressive demagogue doing more harm than good? Well, it’s nice to hear someone coming to his defense. Aaron [...]

In a post from a couple weeks back, I wrote about enjoying Keith Olbermann’s castigation of President Bush over his “giving up golf” comments. I even appreciated the freshness of finally having an unabashed liberal beating the O’Reillys and Limbaughs at their own sensationalistic game. But I did express a bit of a [...]

There comes a time in every critic’s life when they have to face the sad reality that shows they think are pretty vacuous are actually doing some good cultural work. Take, for instance, “Brothers & Sisters,” which — from my very brief perusal (and testimony of trusted friends for which it is a guilty pleasure) — [...]

On eve of what might be the end of the Hillary Clinton candidacy (Obama should, at least, have ensured himself a majority of the pledged delegates after the primaries in Kentucky and Oregon on Tuesday), my joy is mixed with both bitterness and regret. While I am a happy Obama supporter, I’ve waited too long for [...]

If you didn’t catch Keith Olbermann’s screed last night — inspired partially by President Bush’s commitment (which he didn’t really keep, apparently) to give up golf in honor of those servicemen killed in the Iraq War — it’s worth watching. Oh, and buckle yourself in — it’s a pretty wild ride: As genuine as Olbermann [...]

More than a year ago, in response to Joe Biden’s racial miscue at the start of the Democratic primary campaign, I discussed how most white Americans have no idea how to talk about race. Little did I know, though, that ignorance and naivete about race wouldn’t prevent a lot of white people in the media from [...]

The dominant narratives of this election year have nothing to do with Ralph Nader — and most Democrats are pretty darn happy about that. We’re more concerned about race/gender, Barack/Hillary and Bush/McCain stories. The only time we’ll hear about radical leftist politicians will be when the Democrats are reminding us that Barack Obama isn’t one of [...]

The following is a new article by Tim Mitchell, published in the “depth” section of PopPolitics magazine. Mitchell analyzes how critically discarded “versus” horror films can tell us a great deal about how we see conflict in the post-9/11 world. Horror is like any other genre of film: The most popular titles of a given [...]

It’s about time. It’s been two decades since “Pretty Woman” made prostitution seem cool — a path to self-esteem and self-empowerment — and I have rarely seen, outside of academic journals and hard-hitting documentaries, such an effective puncturing of that cultural myth as I read today in an opinion piece by Anne K. Ream and R. [...]

Alessandra Stanley in the New York Times wonders at — rather than analyzes — the sea change that has made “Pop TV” the new favorite venue for politicians. With all the recent appearances by the President, candidates and their spouses on everything from “Deal or No Deal” to the “Colbert Report,” Stanley notes, “It’s hard [...]

A vegan Gentleman’s Club is something right out of The Onion — but you can’t make the comments of Casa Diablo owner Johnny Diablo up (unlike his name): Mr. Diablo isn?t concerned with the “feminazis,” as he calls them. As a vegan himself, he says he hasn?t worn or eaten animal products in 24 years and [...]

The Clinton campaign resorted to race baiting early and often in this election season. And lately they’ve moved on to fear mongering. But, after reading Orlando Patterson’s New York Times op-ed today, I might have to coin a new phrase: racial fear mongering baiting. OK, that phrase isn’t going anywhere — but Patterson’s [...]

Need to celebrate or drown your sorrows? Take The Wire food quiz First, if you don’t know “Sheeeet!,” you don’t know … well, you haven’t been following the best show on television. Whether it’s the best television show of all-time … that is a matter of fierce debate in critics’ circles. Check out this enlightening exchange [...]

Neil Young doesn’t think music can change the world. Oh, and Bush is a fine physical specimen.

My partner and I have been known to explore or dismiss a restaurant purely based on the font of the signage. And most of the time it works. Really. If it weren’t for this technique, we might never have discovered the Wicked Oyster in Wellfleet, Mass., or Moon and River Cafe in [...]